Access control is paramount to computer security. To protect the integrity of computer systems and the confidentiality of important data, various access control schemes have been implemented to prevent unauthorized users and malicious attackers from gaining access to computer resources.
To ensure the comprehensiveness of computer security, access control is often implemented on various levels. For instance, on the level of one computer, a user is typically required to go through a logon procedure in which the computer determines whether the user is authorized to use the computer. In addition, on the level of a computer network, a user is commonly required to go through a user-authentication process for purposes of controlling the user's access to various network services. Even after a network access control server has authenticated the user, the user may still have to request a permit for a specific server in order to access that service. Various schemes based on different protocols, such as the Kerberos 5 protocol, have been proposed and implemented for controlling network access control by means of user authentication.
Generally, the user logon for a computer and the user authentication for network access control are two separate procedures. Nevertheless, to minimize the burden on a user in dealing with the different access control schemes, the user logon and the user authentication for network access are sometimes performed together. For example, in the case where the user authentication is implemented under the Kerberos protocol, when the user logs on the computer, the computer may also initiate a Kerberos authentication process. In the authentication process, the computer contacts a Kerberos Key Distribution Center (KDC) to first obtain a ticket-granting ticket (TGT) for the user. The computer can then use the TGT to obtain from the KDC, a session ticket for itself.
As networks have evolved, there has been a trend to have multiple tiers of server/service computers arranged to handle client computer requests. A simple example is a client computer making a request to a World Wide Web website via the Internet. Here, there may be a front-end web server that handles the formatting and associated business rules of the request, and a back-end server that manages a database for the website. For additional security, the web site may be configured such that an authentication protocol forwards (or delegates) credentials, such as, e.g., the user's TGT, and/or possibly other information from the front-end server to a back-end server. This practice is becoming increasingly common in many websites, and/or other multiple-tiered networks.
Thus, any server/computer in possession of the user's TGT and associated authenticator can request tickets on behalf of the user/client from the KDC. This capability is currently used to provide forwarded ticket delegation. Unfortunately, such delegation to a server is essentially unconstrained for the life of the TGT. Consequently, there is a need for improved methods and systems that support delegation of authentication credentials in complex network configurations, but in a more constrained manner.